Confronting the Issue
by Super Smasher
Summary: In response to a possible lawsuit, Master Hand has invited five newcomers into the fray, and they're all female! But while they hilariously try to fit in at the Mansion, an evil plot is unfolding, and Mewtwo delves into the government to find the source.
1. The Threatening Notice

**Confronting the Issue**

**A Super Smash Brothers Fanfic**

**By: Super Smasher**

**Disclaimer: All licensed characters in this fanfiction and their respective IPs are solely the property the The Nintendo Company and its affiliate companies. Characters used without permission.**

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* * *

  
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It all started with a letter.

That morning, much the same as every morning, Kirby ran outside the Smash Mansion and down the path that led to the mailbox at the end of the drive. It may have not been the most glamorous job at the manor, but he loved it. It took his mind away from eating. The mailbox itself was merely a push-flap trashcan with a large burlap sack inside. Kirby quickly inputted the combination Master Hand had given him into the lock hanging from the steel door. It swung open on oiled hinges. The pink puffball braced himself for the avalanche of letters that were sure to engulf him. Strangely, however, he felt nothing.

The mail had not yet arrived. Curious as to what happened, Kirby peered into the sack. Instead of finding it overflowing with packages and envelopes from far-off worlds, he could only make out a single letter. Reaching for it, he found the bag to be much deeper than he anticipated, and, falling into it, caught himself inside the sack, and tumbled out of the mailbox and into the street, encased in burlap.

Pit had been watching from the porch. He was usually outside at this hour anyways. Being the leader of an army had you up at the crack of dawn and not letting you sleep until far after the sun had set. Besides him and Kirby, the only other people up at this time were usually Marth, Ike, and Snake, but, as Pit thought to himself, when did the secret agent ever sleep anyways?

He watched Kirby struggle with the bag. Laughing to himself, he jogged down the dirt path to help the poor creature out. Quickly unwrapping the pink puffball, he let out a sigh of relief as Kirby smiled up towards him with gratitude. However, he held in his hand a solitary envelope. Pit stared at it for a second, confused. Someone took the trouble to deliver this one letter all the way here? Or perhaps one of the other Smashers had forgotten to put the flag up?

"Mind if I take a look at that, bud?" Kirby replied happily and handed the letter to the angel. Pit looked it over. No, it was definitely addressed to the Smash Mansion. "Better take this to Master Hand. But first..." He smiled at Kirby, gesturing to the tangled sack and ajar mailbox. "Let's get this cleaned up."

* * *

Taking a deep breath, Master Hand stretched in his chair and gazed out the window, watching the sun climb higher in the sky. It was morning already? He'd worked through the night again...perhaps he should enjoy himself more, like Crazy did. Rubbing his tired eyes, the embodiment of creative spirit cracked his knuckles. He wouldn't be watching Pikachu and Wolf fight today. He just needed sleep.

"Master Hand! Master Hand!" Pit exclaimed, bursting through the door into the office, Kirby hot on his heels. "This was in the mailbox." He tossed the letter into the to-do basket on the desk. Regardless of it just being a letter, Master Hand groaned at the prospect of more work. "Read it, read it!" The boy was practically jumping up and down, quite uncharacteristically.

"Ugh..." The floating hand picked up the envelope, and after examining it for a moment, opened it. The two Smasher's eyes sparkled as the boss read through the document quickly. However, as Master Hand got farther and farther in, his weariness seemed to ebb away. By the end of the reading, he was as alert as any hand could be. Slamming it down on his desk, he gestured to the Smashers. "Go wake up Crazy. I don't care if he's hung over. We've got letters to write."

Pit nodded. Whatever was in that letter, it was serious. Motioning to Kirby, the two raced out of the room, determined to find the embodiment of destruction.

* * *

"Sue us?!" Crazy yelled, punching the wall, casing the entire mansion to shake. "Why would anyone want to SUE us? We're not for profit, we've never done any shady business, nothing!"

"Simmer down, brother." Master Hand calmly said, but with a slight quiver in his voice. Things were not looking well. "I haven't even told you why yet. But there is still a chance we can avoid this. We just need to..."

"What? What is it? Please, brother! I don't want to do back to demolition! It doesn't pay well at all! I can't support myself on that meager of a salary! I even let my last crew go! They'll never..."

"CRAZY!!!" Master Hand roared. "Compose yourself. You're always exaggerating. I know what we need to do."

Ike roamed the hallway, popping his joints. He had just gotten out of bed, a whole fifteen minutes later than usual. It was uncommon for the mercenary to sleep in at all. There was no way he'd be doing that again.

Rounding the corner, the swordsman nearly fell flat on his face as he swerved to avoid stepping on an angel and a puffball. "Pit? Kirby? What are you guys do..." Pit jumped up and put his hand over Ike's mouth, gently shushing him.

"Quiet. Something serious is going down. Listen." Kirby motioned to the door, and the three pressed their ears against it. Softly, Master Hand's voice siphoned through the wood.

"Apparently, the EGC got an angry phone call the other day from a distressed woman." The hand said. "She complained that there are not enough female Smashers, and she is prepared to slap us with a lawsuit if we "Continue along this sexist path", is the words this letter uses."

Ike frowned. Not enough girls? Hardly seemed like something worth suing over.

"And they really think that concerns us enough to send us a formal letter?" Crazy's voice emanated from the door. "Who we invite is our business. Why should we change our policies because of one person complaining? As I recall, Samus was the only recognizable female we had in our first year. Then you've got Zelda, Sheik, Peach, Nana, and debateably any of the Pokémon could be female. That's at least five, maybe ten."

"Don't you think I know that? Still, we can't ignore a direct order from the Commission. We need to get some newcomers in here, that's all. I mean, things have been getting pretty stale, and some new blood may be just what Dr. Mario ordered. In any case, two birds with one stone. Now, I've got a shortlist of some potential candidates that I'd like your opinion on..."

Ike pulled away from the door. Pit and Kirby did the same, looking up at the tall hero. The bluenette instantly looked around for anyone watching, then lowered his voice to barely a whisper. "Tell nobody about this." The two Smashers looked at him quizzically. "Something just doesn't sit right with me about this. I'm sure Master Hand will announce the problem to us soon. Until then, keep your lips sealed." Pit and Kirby nodded, and the three headed down to the kitchen to pursue breakfast.


	2. The Formal Announcement

**Confronting the Issue**

**A Super Smash Brothers Fanfic**

**By: Super Smasher**

* * *

Naturally, the entire mansion knew about the situation by lunchtime. Apparently, Peach's bedroom was right below Master Hand's office, and the biggest gossip in the house had heard the news. Word had even reached Assist Acres by then, and several of the female assists had wandered up, hoping to be picked to join the Smashers.

"There's no reason for him not to pick me." Barbara said, setting a tray of food down next to Zelda. "I'm not too bad of a fighter, myself..."

"Really?" Lyn asked. "I'm pretty sure all you do is play the guitar. I don't really think that's what he'd be looking for in a Smasher. I'd like to be in, too though, so I understand your feelings."

"You know, I'm not too sure about you guys." Peach said. "I distinctly heard him say 'New Blood'. So perhaps he'll be looking outside, at some newcomers altogether." The two Assist Trophies scowled at her, but stopped the conversation nonetheless.

"Still, I can't help but wonder who it'll be." Across the cafeteria, Pit, Kirby, Pokémon Trainer, Pikachu, and Ike were also eating. "Maybe somebody I know...? But that's impossible." The angel sighed. "I don't know any girls besides Palutena." he looked around the small table. "Any of you guys know who might be coming?"

The other four shook their heads.

"I can't fathom anyone from our world coming." PT reasoned, with Pikachu nodding. "Besides the fact that any of our Pokémon already here may be female, the only other way would be to have a new Pokémon Trainer by themselves who is a girl."

"Wayo wayo!" Kirby agreed.

"What about you, Ike?" Pit asked. "Do you know anybody who'd fit the bill here?"

Ike thought for a second. "I know plenty of girls who can fight, but probably not any who would fit to come here...most of the ones I know either ride on horseback or another animal to fight, and I really don't know if that's allowed."

"You're probably right." PT pointed out. "I did some research on Ike's world a while back, and there aren't too many females written about in the books in Master Hand's study, even less who fight with their feet planted on the ground."

"But that's still some." Pit reasoned. "Either way, we won't know until they get here, right?" Everyone nodded in unison. "And don't you have a match against Wolf today, Pikachu?" The mouse Pokémon nodded. "I'll be there. I don't have anything better to do today."

"I guess I can come, too." Ike smiled. "I usually have a hard time against Wolf, so this would probably be a great way to study his moveset."

* * *

There were thirty seconds left on Big Blue as the ball of electricity surrounding Pikachu faded, and he dropped down onto one of the cars. He'd just grabbed a Smash Ball and KO'd Wolf, so the score was tied at zero again. Earlier in the match, Wolf had thrown a Freezie at the Electric Pokémon, and he had fallen onto the track and out of the arena.

He used Quick Attack to leap over the car where a Bob-Omb sat, glowing red, which denoted that it was about to explode. He dodged backwards to avoid the explosion and landed smoothly. Wolf came at him from the drop platform. The canine landed and ran at the electric mouse, and used a dash attack. Pikachu jumped straight upwards and used a downward-spiraling attack, but Wolf put up his shield in time. Pikachu tried again, but his opponent swiftly dodged to the other end of the car. Twenty seconds remaining.

Pikachu dashed over to Wolf and dodged behind him as he attempted a kick. Grabbing his foe, the Pokémon shocked him a couple times before throwing him to the ground, where he bounced straight up. Pikachu attempted to use Thunder, but Wolf used an aerial dodge to thwart his attempt. He then landed and punched the mouse in the face. Fifteen seconds left.

Wolf then unleashed a combo attack, sending Pikachu flying. However, the mouse landed in the center of the stage, and the car carrying Wolf was slowly falling offscreen. The canine quickly jumped towards another car, but he was turned in the wrong direction, and ended up wall-jumping off of it and onto the track, where he quickly attempted another jump to avoid being carried offstage. Pikachu knew this was his chance. Five seconds left.

Pikachu quickly ran over and started charging a Skull Bash. However, Wolf had by this time recovered, and, landing behind Pikachu, kicked him onto the track. Pikachu attempted to recover by using Quick Attack, but the gap was too large, and he fell back onto the track and off the screen just as the announcer yelled "Time!"

"And the winner is...Wolf!"

As the arena faded, Pikachu sighed. Wolf had beaten him again. The canine walked over. "It was a good match. You almost had me there." He extended his paw, and Pikachu shook it.

Pit and Ike ambled up. "Good try, Pikachu." Pit smiled. "You'll beat him next time."

Ike nodded. "I learned a lot from this match."

The two then congratulated Wolf on his victory. The gathering was short-lived, however.

"Your attention, please. All Smasher's attention, please!" Master Hand's voice boomed out over the Public Address system. "Would these Smashers please report to my office IMMEDIATELY. Wolf, Pit, Ganondorf, Lucas, and Nana. I repe-" Suddenly, the speakers emitted bursts of static and feedback. Pikachu and Pit covered their ears, while Ike and Wolf looked at each other quizzically.

"Get up here, now!" Crazy Hand yelled over the loudspeaker. "Wolf, Pit, Ganon, Lucas, Nana! We have an important assig-HEY!"

Ike sighed. He'd figured it out, now. Master and Crazy were fighting over the microphone again. The feedback and static continued for a while, with sounds of struggling and expletives being heard. Eventually, Master Hand won.

"That will be all."

Pit uncovered his ears and stood up. "Us?" He looked at Wolf.

"Seems like it." The canine growled. "However, considering who was called, I'm assuming we were picked at random. This may have something to do with the new Smashers we're possibly getting..."

Pit nodded. He turned to Ike and Pikachu. "I'll be back in a bit."

* * *

"As you may have already heard, we are inviting five new Smashers." Master Hand calmly said, staring at everyone assembled. "You five were chosen in a random drawing to be the tour guides for each of the newcomers, much as you all had guides when you arrived." Pit nodded. He remembered how Mario had taken him around the Mansion and the city to show him the going-ons and where everything was located.

"Crazy has five envelopes, with each of your names on them. Inside is the name of the person you will be in charge of, what world they are from, and any acquaintances they may have at the mansion. I expect you all to use this information wisely, and to make our guests feel welcome. They should be arriving tomorrow morning. Please make your preparations as quick as possible."

Pit accepted his envelope, and, returning to his spot next to Wolf, tore the letter open. A solitary sheet of paper fell out. He read it to himself. _Dixie Kong. From Kongo Jungle. Knows Donkey Kong and Diddy Kong._ Great. He got someone who didn't speak a human language. However, considering all the animals that went to Heaven, he knew how to understand them pretty well.

He looked over at Wolf. The bounty hunter was evidently displeased with who he had gotten. Looking past him, Pit could only see confused looks on the rest of the Smasher's faces.

"Mi...Mic...Mica..." Lucas squinted at the page, attempting to read Crazy's atrocious writing. "I give up. She knows Ike, though. Maybe I'll ask him." The young PSI boy shoved the paper back into the envelope and rushed out of the room, followed by Wolf and Ganondorf.

"Um, Master Hand?" Nana peered over the large executive desk. "My person doesn't have any friends here. And what is Tipa, anyways?"

"I'm sorry, Nana." Master Hand sighed. "You'll have to ask them yourselves. That's what being a guide is all about." The Ice Climber nodded, and left the room as well. Pit followed her. Ike would want to hear the news that someone he knew was coming.


	3. The Qualifying Match

**Confronting the Issue**

**A Super Smash Brothers Fanfic**

**By: Super Smasher**

* * *

"Mikka?" Ike asked. Pit nodded. "I've never met anyone named Mikka. Vika, yes. Mikka, no." It was dinnertime, and Pit, Ike, Pokémon Trainer, Pikachu, and Kirby were seated at the same table. "Mind if I steal some of your pork?" The swordsman stabbed a piece of meat from the angel's plate and swallowed it. "Darn. Why did I get the steak?"

"Anyways, Lucas was having trouble pronouncing the name, so maybe that's right. Crazy's writing is terrible. Speaking of which..." he glanced around the cafeteria. "I don't see him anywhere. Maybe he's looking for you...?"

"I saw him a couple hours ago." PT murmured between gulps of spaghetti. "He was just wandering around, like he was lost or something. I asked him what the problem was, but he just walked away. Maybe he's worried about something..."

"Something to be worried about...?" Pit mused. "...Oh yeah! With all the news, I forgot! The qualifying match for this month's tournament is tonight!"

Every month, a 32-person tournament was held at the Smash Mansion. One-on-One, two minutes, all items, all stages. However, there was always the problem that there were 35 Smashers and only 32 spots. Master Hand had resolved this by introducing The Qualifying Match. To put it simply, four Smashers were chosen at random to fight in a three-stock match. Whoever won was in the tournament, the losers sat out.

"He barely squeaked by last time, right?" Ike recalled. "I still remember the look on Wolf's face when he fell into the Jungle Japes river. Good times...good times..."

* * *

"We have received the combatants for this month's elimination round!" Master Hand's voice emitted loud roars from the audience. All the Smashers had gathered at the stadium. Each and every one hoped they would not have to fight tonight, and if they did, that they would win. Ike crossed his fingers. Pit crossed his wings. PT crossed his toes. Kirby crossed his eyes. "The fighters are...Pokémon Trainer, Yoshi, Mr. Game and Watch, and Pit!" Cheers erupted from the audience as Smashers realized they hadn't been chosen, and would go on to the first round.

"Looks like at least one of us will have to sit this one out." Pit said, turning to PT. "May the best fighter win."

"You got it." PT smiled. They pounded fists, before turning their attention back to the two gloved hands onstage.

"The stage will be Rainbow Cruise." Master Hand continued. "Three stock, no time limit, all items. Good luck to everyone competing tonight!" Pit and the Pokémon Trainer made their way through the crowd to center stage, where they were joined by Mr. Game and Watch and Yoshi.

"Let's have a good, clean fight." Crazy said.

"Clean? That's not like you, brother." Master Hand commented.

"Of course it is! I want all the hijinks to occur during the actual tournament! That's when it gets hilarious!"

* * *

As soon as the match started, Ivysaur and Yoshi leapt to the center platform and disappeared in a cloud of dust. Pit flew in from the side, striking out with his swords, and Mr. Game and Watch held his fishbowl below, letting his tropical fish do the fighting for him. Pit's blows connected, and the two animals flew towards the front of the ship. Spying a Ray Gun, Mr. Game and Watch quickly ran over, and, grabbing it, proceeded to fire at the two with impunity.

The next couple seconds were spent dodging the rays that were flying everywhere. This ended with all three running at the monochrome man as soon as there was a break in the firing. However, the retro character was ready, and he did a matrix-style front flip over all three of them. In the space of a couple milliseconds, Ivysaur had landed a sizable hit on Pit, who was now flying backwards off the ship, and Mr. Game and Watch had fired a couple rounds at Yoshi, who was beginning to get spammed off the side of the ship.

Pit was still falling. Mr Game and Watch quickly turned and fired a shot at the angel, but missed. Pit then grabbed the edge of the ship, and, pulling himself up, lashed out with his swords, scoring a few hits. The dark-colored man flew backwards and collided with Ivysaur. They both crashed to the deck. Mr. Game and Watch quickly recovered, rolled behind Pit, and attacked him with a turtle. Yoshi kicked Ivysaur, and all four leaped to the floating platforms as the ship struck one and fell downwards to the valley floor below.

* * *

The engine of the bus roared to life as Shy Guy placed the key into the ignition and turned. The FM radio crackled a bit, before automatically tuning into an 80's rock channel. The creature sighed contently. This was the good stuff. Shaking off fatigue, he checked the bus's clock. 8:57. He'd give that ship another three minutes before he'd head back to the Mansion for the night. It was what he'd been saying since he'd gotten here, always thinking that he'd wait another half an hour.

A minute ticked by. He knew he couldn't leave, though. Master Hand would have his head for that. He'd be waiting here as long as it took for the newcomers to arrive. Maybe he should just go inside and get a hot cup of Joe. The woman who served the coffee at the small seaport was a downright beautiful gal, that was for sure. Perhaps he should lay off all these duties and find himself a nice hobby. He'd always liked model trains.

8:59. Shy Guy turned the bus off. It was time to get a watch. A life, too, perhaps. Being a grunt enemy had its moments, sure. He'd attested to more than one embarrassing death due to Mario not timing his jump correctly. Those were the days he lived for. He lost himself in the memories for a while.

As the clock ticked nine, a faint pink light appeared, out in the middle of the harbor. He quickly started the bus again. A small ship was now materializing out of the conspicuous portal. He would never understand how Master Hand had managed to breach the gap between all the worlds, but he accepted it. The cruiser silently slid into the docks. A gangplank was lowered, and six shadowy figures disembarked. A couple fell to the ground and kissed the earth. The bus driver laughed. He'd been on Axe Knight's ship before, and he remembered every second of it. The guy could fly the Halberd, but he couldn't navigate the seas for the life of him. The boat captain made a couple gestures, and the other people nodded. Single file, they quickly, if slightly wobbly, darted up the dirt path to the bus.

The creature flipped off the radio, and turned on the headlights, so that the figures would have an easier time spotting the vehicle. A couple of them hung back for a second upon seeing the illumination. Of course, they were the ones from less-advanced worlds. He remembered how Link had been convinced the bus was another one of Ganondorf's tricks. That brought back memories. Hitting a small button, Shy Guy watched as the doors flung themselves wide.

"You the newcomers? Can I see your papers, please?"

* * *

As soon as he hit the deck, Pit dodge-rolled to avoid Ivysaur's vines, which lashed out, striking Mr. Game and Watch. They'd gone around the course once. Yoshi's last life had been claimed when the angel had grabbed a Smash Ball and summoned the Centurions. They were heading into the latter part of the match. Pokémon Trainer had one stock left, both Pit and Mr. Game and Watch had two.

Mr. Game and Watch jumped above Ivysaur and slammed down with his key upon the unsuspecting Pokémon, who was only able to put its shield up in the nick of time. It was a Perfect Shield, and both the angel and the monochrome man were stunned for a second. Ivysaur used this opportunity to use a Bulb Blast, which skyrocketed both unwary fighters straight up into the sky. Mr. Game and Watch became a star, while Pit was lucky enough to nail one of the platforms. He quickly used Ukemi to drop down and back into the fray. He was the only one with two lives left, now. He ran towards Ivysaur and landed a couple light hits.

Dropping down from the entry platform, Mr. Game and Watch quickly garnered a Pokéball and tossed it. In a stroke of sheer luck, Latias materialized and summoned Latios. The two Eon Pokémon swept around the stage like zephyrs, knocking both Pit and Ivysaur out of the ring. The announcer yelled out the latest news.

"Pokémon Trainer...DEFEATED!!!"


	4. The Overnight Trip

**Confronting the Issue**

**A Super Smash Brothers Fanfic**

**By: Super Smasher**

* * *

The fifth envelope looked the same as the others. It was stamped with the golden circle and off-center cross, the insignia of the Super Smash Brothers tournaments. After inspecting the contents of the letter, Shy Guy handed it back to the addressee. "Looks to be in order. Climb aboard." The girl nodded, and made her way down the aisle. The bus driver turned his attention back to the last figure standing outside the bus. "These girls look half-seasick, Axe Knight. You need to go back to flying airships."

The skull-faced warrior laughed. "You're probably right. But ever since Metaknight left for this world, I haven't been able to land a job. So I'm glad Master Hand lets me be transportation." He rubbed his neck, which was hard to do, considering his head took up almost his entire body. Shy Guy joined him in a few chuckles. They bade each other farewell, and the bus driver closed the doors. The transmission groaned as he shifted into drive, and the bus started the overnight journey from the harbor to Smash Mansion.

The darkened landscape whizzed past as the vehicle picked up speed, traveling down the lonely dirt road. The creature considered shutting the interior lights off, but a quick glance in the rearview mirror assured him that every person on the bus was wide awake. He sighed. Their eagerness would fade soon. He wished he could find some way for them to pass the time. They probably all wanted to take their minds off getting to the Mansion, meeting new people, fighting in tournaments...

"Oh yeah!" Shy Guy exclaimed to nobody in particular. The girls all looked forward. "I hope you all don't mind if I switch us on to the qualifying round, do you?" When nobody voiced any objections, he flipped a couple switches, and the TVs along the aisles lit up, displaying a fight already in progress. "Shoot. Missed part of it already." He grabbed a pair of headphones and switched his personal radio to a broadcast of the fight.

* * *

As Pit rolled backwards to avoid an attack, Mr. Game and Watch lifted a manhole cover from nowhere out from beneath the angel's feet. Toppling backwards, he just managed to grab the metal railing surrounding the back edge of the ship. The monochrome man jumped back down to the lower deck. Pit struggled, and eventually pulled himself back up. However, the ship hit a platform and began to sink again.

Mr. Game and Watch easily jumped onto a flying carpet, but Pit ran after him. Putting up his shield to avoid a Bob-Omb, he quickly used his flying prowess to jump a couple platforms above his opponent. Suddenly, a Smash Ball appeared. Both fighters knew that this could determine the outcome of the match. The angel passed through a few ledges with ease, aiming for the pinata-esque item, but his foe came at him from above with his Key, and the Smash Ball swerved out of reach. Pit groaned. He needed that ball badly.

He dodged a couple sausages before retreating for a second. Perhaps Mr. Game and Watch would hit it a couple times. Then he would swoop in and steal the prize for himself. However, his strategy quickly dissipated as his foe darted straight at him! Pit quickly jumped a few ledges upwards. The Smash Ball flashed by him, and he swirled his swords in a circle, causing some severe damage to the item. Whoever attacked it next would surely win.

The next couple seconds became a dodging game as the two combatants raced up the ledges in pursuit of the ball. Pit almost had it, once, but Mr. Game and Watch swatted him away with a flaming hot dog. In the end, a well-placed Judge attack netted the Final Smash for the shorter of the two, and he quickly turned into the monstrous octopus. Pit sighed. He dodged quite a few of the attacks, but in the end, the rear tentacle landed a hit, and Pit flew offscreen.

"GAME!!!"

* * *

"And what a stunning ending here, folks! I don't think I've seen a match quite this intense since m-"

Shy Guy removed the headphones and turned his concentration back to the road and his passengers. "What do you think? Those are the kinds of fights you guys will be participating in. Although you probably won't for a while, since you came at the worst possible time. They host a tournament each month. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. I'll answer them as best I can."

"How did he transform into that giant octopus?" The girl in the middle of the bus asked. Her long, silver hair framed her face, her golden eyes questioning.

"Do you remember the ball that they were attacking right before he changed?" She nodded. "That's called the Smash Ball. It's a new device one of the Smash Brothers came up with last year. It apparently brings the inner strength of a person out, converts it to energy, and delivers a great attack. However, it varies greatly from person to person. My favorite is the Triforce Slash, to be honest. I could do without the the cartoony effects on Toon Link's, though."

"I see..." The girl trailed off. Silence once again engulfed the bus.

"You said there are some people called the Smash Brothers." This time, the person farthest to the front spoke. She was obviously an animal of some type, since her body was covered in blue fur. "Do they fight as well?"

"Who, Kevin and Kamon? No, they're the heads of Technology and Marketing for the tournaments. It was Kamon who originally developed the Holorena System you saw there. Those two weren't actually fighting on a flying ship. It was an induced, 2.5-dimensional hologram that followed a set path. If any fighter strays too far from the center of the Holorena, they are knocked out, and either lose a stock or a point, depending on what kind of match they're playing. Kamon came up with all of that. Kevin mostly handles all the money and things like that, and it was he who worked together with Master Hand to bring fighters from all the worlds together to compete here."

* * *

"Newcomers?"

"That's correct." Master Hand confirmed. He picked the EGC's letter out of the pile of work on his desk and tossed it across the room. A young man, bright yellow hair swaying, reached out and caught it. His blue eyes, sitting behind a pair of glasses, scanned the envelope and letter quickly. "That came from the Commission, Kevin. You know that was the only thing I could do on such short notice."

"True, true. I guess that was for the best, though. I was running out of things for Kamon to do, anyways. He'll be glad to run a few tests again, perhaps create a couple more stages...although I guess we'll have to ask Peach to help with the physicals, since Dr. Mario obviously wouldn't be able to."

"Here's the list of who we invited." Crazy crumpled the paper in his hand and shot it at the executive basketball hoop on the door to Master Hand's office. He missed by a wide margin, and Kevin calmly walked over, unwrinkled it, and gave it a quick run-through.

"So you invited someone evil, as well?" The Smash Brother looked across the desk. "I didn't think you had it in you to send an invite to a female antagonist."

"What can I say?" Crazy cackled. "I love a bit of chaos here and there. And she's strong, no doubt about it. And it'll be Wolf guiding her around the place! This is going to be great! Where did I put my camera?"


	5. The End of the Beginning

**Confronting the Issue**

**A Super Smash Brothers Fanfic**

**By: Super Smasher**

* * *

"But...We LOST." Pit said dejectedly.

"So?" Link asked. "Look. I didn't order us pizza just so you three could wallow in self-pity." He motioned towards Roy, who was holding a few pizzas. "Why are you still here anyways?"

Roy laughed. "Joe said I could go home after this delivery, so I just decided to stay here." He was still wearing his Mona Pizza uniform. "What, do you guys have a problem with an ineligible Smasher crashing your party?"

"Not at all!" Pokémon Trainer said quickly. "We're happy to have you here, Roy."

Pit, Pokémon Trainer, Yoshi, Ike, Link, Kirby, Pikachu, and Roy were gathered in the Mansion's Rec Room. A small card table had been set up, and Pikachu had managed to find a few bags of chips and some soda left in the communal fridge.

"Anyways...don't worry about it!" Roy said, throwing his arm around Pit in a friendly manner. "Besides! Now you can hang out with the new girls while the rest of these losers are fighting their brains out! That's enough cause for celebration!" Kirby and Pikachu cheered their assent, and quickly darted over to the table to partake in the gathering of delicious digestibles.

"Speaking of which," Ike said, looking at Pit. "Have you told DK or Diddy that their friend is coming?"

"Not yet." The angel shook his head. "I haven't had any time, what with all the didgeridoo about newcomers and the tournament and stuff."

"Hey!" Link yelled. "This pizza's cold!"

"I'm on it." Roy left Pit and strode over to the table, where he charged up his normal B attack, letting the flames heat the pies back up to normal temperature.

"I could totally do that." Ike murmured.

* * *

"Solder."

"Pichu."

"Screwdriver."

"Pi...chu."

"Pliers."

"Pi? ...Chu."

Kevin walked at a brisk pace through the lower level of the Smash Mansion. As he passed the doorway to the Holorena room, he noticed a faint light flickering inside. He sighed. There was only one person in the world who would be in there at this hour.

"You just can't stop fiddling with that thing, can you?" he asked loudly, walking through the doorway. The room was large, with several rows of bleachers surrounding a large hologram platform situated in the center. Underneath the frame, Kevin could see a small door open, with a pair of legs sticking out haphazardly. A blue-goggled Pichu stood just outside, feeding tools from an overly large box, where a rubber glove-covered hand accepted them. At the sound of the intruder's voice, Pichu looked up, and the owner of the legs slid out from underneath the stage.

"Of course." Kamon smiled, removing a pair of similar working goggles from his face. As he lifted them away from his eyes, the same cerulean color as Kevin's, they became entangled in his midnight black hair. "Owowowowow!" Pichu quickly jumped onto his shoulder and helped pry the eye protectors away. "Thanks, bud." He stared at his older brother, who was now leaning against the door frame. "Any reason in particular you decided to drop by?"

"This." A small piece of paper flew through the air, and bounced off the mechanic's skull. Smoothing it on his leg, he quickly gave the letter a once-over. "Newcomers. They're coming tomorrow. Apparently, some lady wanted to sue us on a sexism charge."

"And why does that concern us?" Kamon asked. "Who the Hands invite is their own business. Why should they change their policies due to one person complaining?"

"That's exactly what I said." Crazy said, appearing in the doorway behind Kevin. "We're on the same page."

"Great." The technician laughed to himself. "Looks like I better end this for tonight and go give the Scanner a tune-up. These Final Smashes were a great idea, but they take a buttload of testing. Did you contact Dr. Mario and Peach about physicals?"

"I was on my way to to that now." Kevin retorted. "Always one step ahead of you, brother." With that closing remark, he turned and proceeded down the hallway.

"I better go help Master Hand with all the paperwork." Crazy muttered. "Take it easy, Kamon."

"Will do!" As the glove left, Kamon cracked his neck and closed the access panel to the Holorena's motherboard. "Let's go, Pichu." he said. The mouse Pokémon quickly followed. There would be a lot to do tomorrow.

* * *

As he glanced in the mirror, Shy Guy noticed that almost every one of the newcomers were asleep in their seats, with the exception of the one farthest to the back, the evil-looking one with the black armor and the creepy blue stare. He flipped the interior lights off. Instantly, the road ahead became easier to see. He still couldn't see the highrises of Nintendo City yet, but that was to be expected, since it wasn't even midnight yet.

"So, how much longer until we arrive?"

Shy Guy jumped in his seat, nearly losing control of the bus as he panicked. Looking in the mirror, the girl with the armor and blue glow was standing just behind him, in the center of the aisle. Just looking at her gave him chills. She was obviously from a very technologically advanced world, since she looked almost robotic. When he thought about it, she did look similar to a certain woman who was already at the Mansion...

"Not for another six hours, at least. It's an overnight trip, due to such short notice. Are you in a hurry to get there?"

"Yes and no. I love fighting, but there is someone who would most likely impede me."

"Ah, a vendetta."

"You could say that." She then turned around and quickly strode back to her seat. Shy Guy gave a sigh of relief. She was scary, no doubt. Obviously an antagonist. He watched her sit down, and stare out the window at the dark plains outside. He refocused on the road. He needed to smooth the ride, since these girls would probably want as much sleep as possible. There would be plenty to do tomorrow.

* * *

"What's the status on the Scanner?" Master Hand asked. He, Pichu, and the Smash Brothers were standing in a back room, inside Dr. Mario's Clinic in East Nintendo City. Crazy was just outside in the hallway, talking to the good doctor himself.

"If I pull an all-nighter, it should be finished by tomorrow morning." Kamon smiled, absentmindedly tapping a wrench against his palm. "The system needs updating, but that can wait until later. However, I will need a new retinal scanner. Remember how the last one got fried after Wolf's eyepiece interfered with it?"

"Yes." the Hand recalled. "I'll never forget the look on Roy's face when we said it wouldn't be ready in time for the release. I need to make it up to them at some point...but I digress. What I wanted to say was that I wanted you two..." he pointed at the Smash Brothers, "To pick the newcomers up at the Garage, and bring them here for the exams. I would have had the Smashers assigned to them do it, but they'll be at the tournament all day..."

"I can't." Kevin said. "Unfortunately, I have a meeting with the EGC at noon tomorrow. Mewtwo and I fly out for Central at five."

"I guess I could." Kamon shrugged. "I might have to pick up one of those 1UP Energy Drinks that everyone's so wild about, though."

"Thanks." Master Hand complied, clapping the shorter of the two brothers on the back. "I knew I could count on you. Now, I'd better head back to the Mansion. There's going to be a lot to do tomorrow."

* * *

"WILL YOU TURN THAT MUSIC DOWN?!" Everyone froze as an insanely angry Marth strode into the room, followed by a disgruntled Ganondorf in Starfy pajamas, hugging a Teddiursa doll.

"Marth!" Roy yelled, walking up. "My old chum! How has life been treating you, my tiaraed friend?"

"Just fine, until I started hearing Soulja Boy so loud that my bed was doing the dance around my room!"

"Well, EXCUSE us, Princess." Link said, sarcasm tinting his voice. "Thanks for crashing the party for these three people who are now unable to enter this month's tournament."

"Yoshi!"

Marth growled. He then turned and stalked out of the room. Ganondorf looked around, grabbed a handful of popcorn shrimp, and ran out after the swordsman.

"You know, it is getting pretty late, guys." Ike assented, gathering up some of the discarded soda cans. "Those new guys are coming tomorrow, and I know Pit here has to be a guide for one of them. So let's end this thing and get to sleep." There was a general murmur of agreement around the room as the Smashers started grabbing food items and heading for the kitchen.

Afterwards, Pit lay in his bedroom, staring at the ceiling. Although he was upset about not winning the match today, those feelings were overshadowed by wondering about Dixie Kong, Mikka, and whoever else would be coming. Five in all...no, he needed to stop worrying about all this. He pulled the comforter up to his chin and rolled over, facing the wall. He had to sleep, since there was a bunch of stuff to do tomorrow.


	6. The Next Morning

**Confronting the Issue**

**A Super Smash Brothers Fanfic**

**By: Super Smasher

* * *

**

"Attention, please. All passengers, attention please. We are now at the Nintendo City Limits. We shall be arriving at the bus garage in about fifteen minutes. Make sure you have all personal belongings with you before exiting the vehicle. Thank you for riding with us. As if you had much of a choice! Hahahahaha!"

Shy Guy hung the microphone back up near the transistor, and gazed absently backwards in the mirror. The girls were slowly coming around, come of them stretching out of uncomfortable positions, others peeling their faces away from the windows. But once they became cognizant of the world around them, there was one emotion that pervaded the bus: awe.

The highrises of Nintendo City surrounded them. Skyscraper after skyscraper went past, bathed in an early morning glow. Questions escaped from the lips of the onlookers, mostly subconsciously.

"Amazing."

"How do they stay up? Is it magic?"

"I feel like they're gonna fall on me..."

"Oooooo..."

The bus driver laughed to himself, eliciting a few vengeful stares. "Those are called skyscrapers. And they're not held up by magic. At least, not the normal ones, anyways." He stared at the road ahead. The street was mostly empty, except for a few early birds out and about. The morning rush had not yet started. Traveling was easy, for the time being.

* * *

_Whrrrr....Clunk._

Grabbing the energy drink from the receptacle in the vending machine, Kamon Smash popped the lid and devoured about half of the contents before handing the rest to Pichu, who was half-asleep as it was. The bus garage was a lonely place. A few pieces of paper littered the grounds, but there was not much else to speak of. The mechanic took a seat on a bench next to the small Pokémon. It wouldn't be much longer, now.

As if on cue, a lone bus rolled into the south end of the lot, rolling to a stop a few feet away. Kamon could see Shy Guy through the windows, and several figures were stretching and collecting belongings in the back. Motioning for Pichu to follow, he quickly strode up to the bus doors, and waited for them to open. "Shy Guy! What's going on?! Hope you don't mind this, being on such short notice and all..."

"Not at all!" The creature replied. "Although, to be honest, I wasn't expecting to see you, Kamon. I was thinking Kevin would be here."

"Thanks. No, he and Mewtwo flew out for Central about an hour ago. They should be schmoozing with the Commission by now."

"I see. Alrighty then. Take good care of these girls, you hear?"

"Fine. Where are these lumps of sunshine, anyways?" It was only a couple seconds more before the girls clambered down the steps of the bus and into the crisp air of Nintendo City. They gazed around for a second, before focusing on the Smash Brother. "Welcome to Nintendo City and the Super Smash Brothers! My name is Kamon Smash, head of Technology for the tournaments. Basically, that mean I'm the only person who knows how to fix the Holorena. Anyways, let's get going. Before we do anything, we need to get your physical examinations out of the way."

* * *

As he sat in the flowerbeds of the Smash Mansion, R.O.B. despised the fact that he couldn't feel anything. He was a machine, not able to touch, smell, taste. Devoid of senses, he was bathed in sorrow. To make matters worse, he had the first match of the day, against Metaknight, of all people. Suddenly, his field of vision quickly flew downwards. This obviously meant that something had struck him from behind.

"Sorry, R.O.B.!"

The robot turned around. A newspaper was lying a couple feet away, and at the end of the drive, he could see Young Link on his bicycle, delivering newspapers. He took a minute to compose himself, then picked the paper up and headed back inside the Mansion. Heading for the kitchen, he spied Ness and King Dedede eating breakfast. He rolled over, and handed the news to the obese King, who accepted it.

At this point, Ike wandered into the cafeteria, with a bad case of bedhead. Ness laughed. "Got up a little weary today? You look like you were partying last night."

"You mean you slept through the music?" Ike muttered, heading for the serving line, where he grabbed a tray from Chef Kawasaki. "I thought we had the entire Mansion up, not just Marth and Ganondorf."

King Dedede snorted into his cereal. "You guys weren't the only ones up. I hear Mr. Game and Watch was hosting his own shindig down at Assist Acres. I think those two were the only ones left here to complain!" Ike grumbled, grabbing a couple pieces of bacon. He set his tray down next to R.O.B. and began to stock up for the day. Energy would be an absolute necessity.

"And what about the newcomers? I heard you know one of them, Ike." Ness said, between bites of egg.

"Apparently so. Lucas has her name, but I haven't seen him around. I guess I'll just have to wait until they get here..."

* * *

Master Hand gazed outside. Another sunrise, another night of no sleep. Kamon should be meeting with the newcomers by now. Yawning, he returned to the stack of papers that needed his attention. Crazy chose this point to walk in.

"Brother. Do you have a minute?" Master Hand nodded, and Crazy hovered through the door. "Do you really think this was the best time to invite newcomers? The tournament will already be underway. They will not have a chance to compete. Also, most of the current Smashers will be ignoring them because of it. They may find it a bit harder to fit in than they hoped."

"This is unlike you. Are you telling me you're worried about the new combatants?"

"I have a soft spot for girls, so what?"

Sighing, Master Hand cracked his knuckles. "I'm aware the timing was off. But you realize it was the only thing we could do."

"More like the only thing you wanted to do." Crazy suggested. "You knew Kevin and Mewtwo were meeting the Commission today. You could have sent a message with them. We could have avoided bringing any newcomers in at all. We could have let the Forbidden Seven in." This elicited another sigh from the embodiment of creative spirit. "You're becoming too hasty, brother. And this letter..." he picked the EGC's informational envelope up. "It reeks of falsehood. Why would they send this to us, rather than dealing with this directly? Something doesn't make sense, and I intend to find out what." As his brother left the room, Master Hand gazed out the window again.

"The idiot. Does he think I don't know? That I didn't notice? Does he think we can do anything?" He turned back to his work. "No. Not yet. But soon...."


	7. The Tournament Commences

**Confronting the Issue**

**A Super Smash Brothers Fanfic**

**By: Super Smasher**

* * *

"GAME!!!"

As Skyworld faded, R.O.B. slowly rolled away from the Holorena, amidst cheering and clapping. As it predicted, it'd lost to Metaknight by a full four points. Making its way towards the bleachers, it was passed by Ness and King Dedede, who were heading to the stage for their own battle.

"Too bad, R.O.B.." Peach said, patting its head.

"Yeah. You'll do better next time." Toon Link agreed. The robot just sat there, motionless. The next match was starting soon. As Big Blue materialized inside the Holorena, Ness and King Dedede jumped simultaneously, but the king quickly threw a Waddle Dee at the psychic boy. He quickly dodged it by double-jumping. Once he landed safely on top of the Falcon Flyer, King Dedede quickly dodge-rolled behind him. They each attempted a few attacks, but neither were able to hit each other, due to their dodging and shielding proficiencies.

"They're about equally matched." Lucario muttered from beside Toon Link. "Although I think Dedede will ultimately be the victor."

"And just how do you see that?" Peach asked. "I believe in Ness. I think he'll pull through and beat that portly penguin soundly." Toon Link nodded his agreement. Lucario gave a huff and returned to watching the match. R.O.B. was still spacing. Nearby, Ike was busy figuring out battle strategies.

"Now, I'm pretty slow, but I pack a wild punch. I should use this to my advantage and try to appear in places where the opponent cannot escape without going past me, and that's where I make my move. But I need to watch out for fliers, and people like Mario who can dodge easily..." Kirby poked the swordsman a few times, but was unable to snap him out of his daze. He looked around pleadingly for help. Pikachu just shrugged and kept watching the match. Link smiled weakly, but did the same. Marth ignored him altogether.

By this time, the Falcon Flyer had disappeared offscreen, and the two combatants were fighting on top of the F-Zero cars. Ness grabbed Dedede and headbutted him a couple times, before his opponent broke out of his grasp and twirled his hammer in the boy's face. Knocked back a step, Ness rolled behind him and put up his shield as the penguin puffed up and hovered over him.

* * *

"And welcome back to the Smash Network, I'm Toon Zelda. If you're joining us for the first time, we just saw King Dedede barely beat out Ness in Sudden Death. We now take you live to the battle between Lucario and Sonic, already in progress."

Kamon clacked away at a small computer, keeping an eye on the tournament all the while. Gazing up at the Scanner, he sighed. The large data registry machine looked like a cryo chamber from a Sci-Fi movie. However, the purpose in itself was very different. Gazing off the list of the newcomers names, he quickly created files for each of them, preparing for the Scan.

"...and Dixie Kong. Done." He finished, and leaned back in his chair to gaze at the small television next to him. The stage was Yoshi's Island, and Sonic had just broken open a Smash Ball and was whizzing around quickly. However, try as hard as he could, the blue blur could not knock his opponent offscreen. The golden Super Sonic glow faded, and the two faced off again. Lucario quickly grabbed a fan, while Sonic darted for a Smart Bomb. The Aura Pokémon reached his target first, however, and threw the paper craft at his foe, who skyrocketed out of the Holorena, bomb in hand.

"Kamon?" The Smash Brother looked up as Dr. Mario walked into the room. "The girls have finished their examinations. You may commence the procedure now." He then turned and left, as the newcomers shuffled into the room. Kamon stretched and stood up.

"Alright. This is the final phase of your exams. Basically, I'm going to have you stand in that machine," he pointed at the Scanner. "And it will use infrared technology to gather all the information we need to get you into the Holorena. The best thing it does is tell us what your Final Smash will be."

The short, purple-haired girl raised her hand, questioning. Kamon nodded, prompting her to speak. "Do we have to strip again?"

Kamon was confused for a second. "Peach made you wha...?" As the realization of what she had just said swept over him, the technician clasped his hand over his face to try and stifle the nosebleed. "Um...I'll be back in a second. Make yourselves comfortable." Quickly, he strode out of the back room, down the hall, and darted into the restroom.

"Jeez." The girl murmured as he left. "Men are such pigs."

* * *

"Can I talk to you for a moment?" The man asked. He looked at Mewtwo. "Alone?"

"Sure, Scott." Kevin shrugged, and followed the man across the crowded lobby of the airport to a more secluded area. The Psychic Pokémon huffed, and sat back. His sharp ears picked up everything, and he had no problem making out what the two were saying.

"So, I heard you invited Zwee Tam to that little tourney of yours." Scott said, gazing out the airport's window at the towering skyline of Central City. Even those in Nintendo were dwarfed by these inhuman monsters that seemed to stretch for miles and miles upwards, into the clouds. Kevin's eyes narrowed.

"Scott, with all due respect, Nintendo owns the rights to any licensing of anything that comes out of Crysteria. The fact that you guys at Square Enix did the developing means nothing. We own that world."

"And by all means, take it." The man smiled. "After The Crystal Bearers hits Earth's shelves, we're cutting that whole division loose anyways. My Life as a King was a complete accident. You know that." Flicking a lighter, he took a long puff of a cigar. "What I wanted you here is for bigger things." Mewtwo's ears perked. Something didn't seem right about this man. His brain wave patterns were scattered in a corrupted way.

"If you want another ins-"

"I'm not here about Crysteria, Kevin!" Scott yelled. "What I want, is a solid Square character in your next release. If you haven't noticed, Kingdom Hearts' popularity is falling. Fast. I want Sora in on your little shindig. This could help both of us in the long run. We're trying to cut from Disney as much as possible, but we can't muscle the rights away from them alone."

"And is there any reason I should accept this offer? Or even bring it to Master Hand's attention?" The blond man sternly asked. "You don't need the popularity. Snake is there because Konami begged us, and we've been on good terms with SEGA since they backed out of hardware. Why should you partner with us now?"

"You had to have heard the news. Final Fantasy isn't Sony-exclusive anymore. We sold some of the rights to our new story's backbone to Microsoft. We know Sony is the next SEGA, Mr. Smash. We want all our bases covered."

Long after he had left, Mewtwo appeared behind Kevin. "What...just happened? Earth? SEGA? Kingdom Hearts?" Kevin smiled, and turned to his friend.

"Mewtwo, do you think you can keep a secret?"


	8. The Scanning Finishes

**Confronting the Issue**

**A Super Smash Brothers Fanfic**

**By: Super Smasher**

* * *

"Good match, Marth." Link said, giving the swordsman the thumbs up. He slapped Ike on the back, prompting him to snap out of his daze and also give congratulations. The recipient of this phrase merely snorted.

"As if I would have had any chance of losing to Diddy Kong." His cape swirling around his ankles, Marth headed to the other side of the arena to take a seat next to Metaknight and Snake. Link snarled after him.

"He's such a jerk to us. I wonder how people in his own world put up with him." Kirby poyoed a bit, before returning to munch on some fruit snacks, which Pikachu was playfully trying to wrestle away from him. The Hylian reached into his tunic pocket and unfolded a small sheet of paper, detailing the tournament bracket. He quickly jotted Marth's name in the empty space, and looked at the next match. "Looks like Donkey Kong and Wario are fighting next."

"Should be a solid match." Wolf murmured, returning from the kitchen with a large bag of popcorn. "One that I can't predict the outcome as easily as Metaknight against R.O.B." Pikachu instantly left Kirby alone and vied for Wolf's attention, and his vegetable snack.

"And who should we bet on, you or Peach?" Link asked, smirking. "I can't really tell the difference between you two, either." Wolf growled a bit, before stuffing his face with the buttery morsels. The two combatants were now making their way into the Holorena, waiting for the next stage to appear.

* * *

"...And...that's the last of it!" Kamon grinned, shoving the keyboard away from him. Dixie Kong quickly scrambled out of the Scanner and joined the rest of the new Smashers along the wall. "Thanks for your patience. It'll be just a minute before I can get your Final Smashes in order. Feel free to head back out to the waiting room if you want, but please don't leave the building." The five girls nodded. They quietly filed out of the room. Kamon sighed. "Not a very talkative bunch are they?" Pichu murmured his assent, before returning to his apple.

"GO!" The television announcer screamed. Kamon jerked his head back to the glowing box as the match between Donkey Kong and Wario started. The two materialized on the Mario Circuit stage. The Smash Brother smiled. That had been a great stage to work on. They'd actually recreated the entire track. He had actually hidden away a protocol that would allow up to four people to try their hand at Mario-Kart style racing. He needed to tell the gang from Mushroom Kingdom about that, they'd love to go for a quick spin.

Wario quickly sucked DK into his mouth and began to chomp down on the ape. After spitting him back out, the man spun his body around on the ground, knocking his opponent back a few feet. However, the furry soon came back with a vengeance, headbutting him powerfully, though not enough to send him into the ground pitfall-style. In retaliation, he grabbed DK and threw him to the ground. The ape had no time to recover before the fat little man body-slammed him. However, he spied a Hammer close by, and, grabbing it, caused Wario to run away, like a small child runs to its mother. Unfortunately, his impaired jumping ability meant that he was a prime target for the Shy Guys driving karts around the track, and they mercilessly ran him down.

"Umm...excuse me..." Jolting upwards in surprise, Kamon quickly swiveled around in his seat. Two of the newcomers, the ones with purple and silver hair, were standing not too far away, starting at the television. It was the silver-haired girl who had spoken. "What is that thing you are gazing at so intently?"

Kamon laughed, patting the picture box. "Sorry about that. Got to explain most of this stuff to you all. This here's a Television, or TV, for short. Basically, someone records an image on a device called a Camera, and that image is broken up into tiny pieces and send through the air in waves. Once they find a TV, they are reassembled into picture and sound, and are displayed here." he pointed at the box. "It lets you see things like the tournament, without actually having to be there."

"That seems very convenient." she smiled. "I wish we had things like this where I come from." Suddenly, there was a loud bleeping noise from the computer, and Kamon quickly checked the screen.

"Looks like your Final Smashes are done processing." He held his hand next to a small printer and received five separate sheets of paper. Two of these he handed to the girls. "Looks like yours is Great Thani, and yours is Miasma Guard." The technician stood up. "I'll be back in a second, let me deliver these."

* * *

With five seconds left, DK picked up the tail feathers to the Dragoon. He knew that if he could just knock the midsection away from Wario, he could end this without having to go into Sudden Death. However, he slipped on a conveniently placed Banana Peel, and fell to the ground just as the timer ran out. The next thing he knew, they were back to their starting positions, and the announcer was yelling "SUDDEN DEATH!!!" Quickly, he tried to jump to the center platform. However, Wario was able to get under him and pull off an attack. The ape groaned as he sailed away and offscreen.

As they descended from the Holorena, Samus and Zelda rose from their bench and gave the other a long, hard gaze, which was a bit hard for the Hylian, as she was staring at the Varia Suit's visor.

"May the best fighter win." Zelda said, stony-faced as she reached out to shake the bounty hunter's hand.

"Likewise." Samus assented, as she grasped the princess' palm. They turned towards the stage, and commenced their ascent to the tournament.

"Money's on Zelda. Money's on Zelda." Link chanted. Ike face-palmed himself. It wasn't exactly a secret in the Mansion that Link had a fancy for her, even though she showed no sign of liking him back. To her, their relationship was strictly between a ruler and her loyal subject. But Ike knew how he felt. He had felt the same way about Elincia, a long time ago...

"Of course." Wolf snickered, as Rupees exchanged from the hero's hand to his. "I believe that bet is once I am going to take." He pocketed the money, obviously with no intention of giving it back to Link, no matter if he won or lost. Pikachu sadly eyed the greedy canine's antics. Kirby finished his fruit snacks and started to chow down on Wolf's forgotten popcorn.

"And put some of that on Bowser, too." This drew Ike's attention again.

"You know, it's not smart to be betting against someone who's sitting right next to you..."

* * *

"Most of the people you will see in Central come from one world in particular. We call it Earth. Central is built around the portal that allows communication between that world and this one." Kevin and Mewtwo were seated at a small sidewalk cafe in the Entertainment district of Central City. There were still a few hours until the meeting with the Commission. "Spiraling around Central are different Hub Cities, each with a name corresponding to a Company on Earth. Nintendo City. SEGA City. Konami City."

"Square Enix City?"

"Correct. These cities are also built around portals, and "own" the rights to anything within the worlds they are connected to. Nintendo owns anything from Mushroom Kingdom. SEGA owns anything from Mobius. However, this only extends to outside of the worlds. Inside is a very different manner.

"Our companies send in Developers, or Documentors. These people take notes on any extraordinary happenings in that world, such as how Red took down Team Rocket and became the Kanto Leauge Champion in your world. If the Licensers, which are the three companies of Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony approve of these stories, they are turned into interactive storybooks called Video Games, which we sell in Earth for money."

"So Licensers have naught to do with the developing."

"Sony and Microsoft depend almost wholly on outside Developers for their stories. We call these Third-Party Delevopers. However, Nintendo has several "in-house Developers, called First-Party Developers, who do the work themselves. Nintendo itself is in charge of Mario's world, while a Nintendo Developer by the name of Game Freak is in charge of yours."

"This doesn't explain Scott and the Smash Brothers Tournament."

"I was just getting to that. See, Master Hand is in charge of Nintendo's forays in this in-between world, called Console. It is divided into six subsections, called Playstation 3 and Playstation Portable, owned by Sony, Xbox 360, owned by Microsoft, PC, which is owned by mostly Microsoft, but is shared by Apple and a few other companies, and our sections, DS and Wii. However, portals are constantly on the move, and as our technology advances, we rename and update our sections. Wii used to be called Gamecube, DS used to be called Game Boy Advance. You could track the history backwards."

"You were supposed to talk about the tournament."

"Oh yes. Master Hand decided to invite several stong competitors from each world to battle, and would make a Video Game out of it, which was named after his allies in the process, the Smash Brothers. However, we were running low on characters, since most worlds are at peace at the moment. So we collaborated with Konami and SEGA to bring Sonic and Snake here to fight. This skyrocketed their fame in Earth. Scott wants us to let in a character from one of their failing franchises, Kingdom Hearts, so that that same thing may happen with them."


End file.
